A CARELESSLY discarded cigarette caused a van to catch fire creating traffic chaos on the busy A55 for several hours yesterday afternoon.

The emergency services were called to the eastbound carriageway at junction 20 Old Colwyn at 4.45pm after motorists reported a Ford Transit van on fire.

Propane gas cylinders aboard the van caused the A55 to be closed in both directions for more than an hour while fire crews from Colwyn Bay and Abergele tackled the blaze.

A North Wales Fire Service spokeswoman said two propane gas cylinders, used for welding, were removed from the van by fire fighters wearing breathing apparatus.

The fire was then quickly brought under control and officers carried out their investigation to determine the cause, which was thought to be a discarded cigarette.

Eyewitnesses said they saw flames and thick black smoke billowing from the vehicle.

One said: “I’ve never seen a vehicle catch fire so quickly and so disastrously. I was coming up behind and saw the smoke and when I passed there were flames coming from the cab.”

Traffic quickly tailed back and at one stage stretched two miles beyond the Mochdre exit. Motorists heading east were diverted onto the A547 through Colwyn Bay and Old Colwyn and the roads through the town were clogged with traffic.

Sally Paine, 54, of Llanddulas, was waiting for a bus in Conway Road, Colwyn Bay.

She said: “It’s like the old days before the Expressway through the town when traffic jams happened every day.

“It couldn’t have happened at a worse time with schoolchildren heading home, then the general busy period starting.”

A Wales Ambulance Service NHS Trust spokesman said they had been made aware of the incident but no ambulances were required. North Wales Police spokeswoman confirmed no one had been hurt.